After Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya to Also Have All Women Polling Stations

After successful runs in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, Meghalaya will be the third state to set up all women polling stations during the assembly election next year.

Of the total 3,082 polling stations that will be set up, 60 will be completely managed and run by women. ‘The decision has been taken to empower women and improve their participation of women voters in the upcoming assembly election in the state,’ chief election commissioner Achal Kumar Joti said here. Besides Joti, Om Prakash Rawat and Sunil Arora were part of the Election Commission team that visited the state to assess election-preparedness.

Joti said the Meghalaya chief electoral officer will be setting up one polling station to be looked over by women in each of the 60 assembly constituencies in the state. Such booths, christened as ‘pink booths’, will comprise all-women teams for conducting elections, which will include a presiding officer, polling officers, microobservers and security personnel.

There are 8.93 lakh women voters in the state, accounting for 50.52% of the total electorate. The Election Commission has also asked the state to ensure sufficient supply of electricity to polling stations where power supply is erratic. State officials have also assured the commission to ensure there is accessibility to persons with disabilities at the polling stations.